A Special Invitation to a Costume Tea at The Warner House, Portsmouth, NH.

Jonathan Warner extends an invitation to you and your friends for a special afternoon at the MacPheadris-Warner House, Portsmouth, NH.

We live in one of the finest early-Georgian brick houses in New England, c. 1716. I would not be too bold as to add that we are also among the best appointed in these northerly climes - our gardens are delightful, our murals powerful and our smalt chamber the envy of many. Declared a National Historic Landmark in 1960, we are well-situated in downtown Portsmouth, near the mighty Piscataqua (and rather close to Maine). Our house has been a bit quiet of late - Might you and your friends be interested in a venue for costumed events such as teas or perhaps a dance?

Do join us in your costume of choice on Saturday, 21 June 2014 for an open house from 11:00-3:00. A five dollar donation covers tea, cookies and a tour. RSVP to Jeffrey Hopper, Warner House Manager at info@warnerhouse.org by 15 June.

Revolutionary War Patriot Samuel Cutts and His 1780s Suit

A fine, trim suit worn by Revolutionary war patriot, Samuel Cutts (1726-1801) c. 1780s, will be on view at the Saco Museum, Saco, Maine, from 14 March – 6 May 2014. The narrow cut of the blue silk coat with matching buttons reveals an elaborate silk brocade waistcoat beneath, sporting tiny brass buttons. The fabric for the coat was most likely English but cut and tailored in New England/New Hampshire, while the vest was probably pieced together from a kit. The slim cut of the breeches underscore that this was not the garb of a man involved in physical labor. The ensemble emphasized a lean silhouette with shallow pockets or artificial flaps, all serving to eliminate bulk. There are no coat skirts or extraneous material.

His later ensemble on view at Saco, provides valuable contrast to the suit in which he is depicted two decades earlier (c. 1763) in a painting by Joseph Blackburn at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. One would not surmise that Cutts would “become something of a hero among local radicals” just a decade hence. [1]

Cutts, of Portsmouth's Committee on Safety, greeted Paul Revere at the conclusion of what is frequently considered his “other” ride at Stoodley’s Tavern in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Revere’s ride on 13th December 1774 along the Boston Post Road was cold, icy and dark. Occurring months before his more legendary ride on April 18, 1775  Revere road to warn the citizens of New Hampshire of a potential British troop landing. With a tad more aggression, Revere's "Portsmouth Alarm" could well have ignited an earlier start to the American Revolution. The ensuing raid on Fort William and Mary by the seacoast area militia, is still considered by many as the initial strike of the battle for independence.

As noted by Revolutionary War authority J.L. Bell “ If we want to spotlight the moment when the political conflict in New England turned military, then we might want to look at the shots fired at Fort William & Mary at New Castle near Portsmouth in December 1774. Nobody was killed there, but that confrontation got closer to being fatal than the Salem raid [referring to what is popularly known as Leslie’s Retreat].” [2]

The suit is on loan from Strawbery Banke Museum (www.StrawberyBanke.org). The mannequin was created by Astrida Schaeffer of Schaeffer Arts (www.SchaefferArts.com)

[1] For detailed account of the Portsmouth Alarm, see Thomas F. Kehr
http://www.nhssar.org/essays/FortConstitution.html

[2] For more on the American Revolution and pivotal moments, see J.L. Bell
http://boston1775.blogspot.com/2014/02/should-today-be-salem-gunpowder-day.html

For an overview, see
http://seacoastnh.com/history/rev/revere.html

What is in a Label? London Cordwainers Identify Work

Excerpt from 

"Silkbrocade: The Commoditization of the London Georgian Shoe and 

Its Reception in Colonial America"

Kimberly S. Alexander, Ph.D.

University of New Hampshire

Durham, NH. USA

Fashioning the City Symposium, Royal College of Art, London

September 2012

Part 1: Thomas Ridout and James Davis

In the world of the Georgian London shoe trade, the survival of dozens of labeled ladies shoes in North American collections  provides a unique opportunity for the costume historian. Having examined an abundance of these shoes, ranging from the 1740s-1810s, the focus of this post will be on two well- established cordwainers and what their labels reveal.

Working both independently and in partnership, James Davis and Thomas Ridout, affixed labels to their shoes by the mid-18th century. Stylistically, the labels are round or feature a "shield" set within the roundel. The border is simple, although, in the example of Mehitable Rindge Rogers (1725-1803) shoe (c.1760-1770) by Davis, the treatment has a more baroque flourish. (Warner House, Portsmouth, NH. USA) The label notes that the shop location was near Aldgate and research reveals that this was in the heart of the Ward of the Cordwainer. Indeed, Ridout and Davis were no doubt at the height of their production, when, in 1763, the late Medieval Aldgate was taken down.

The very existence of labeled work attests to issues surrounding professionalization, recognition and advertising. Further, for those shoes destined for the export trade, the existence of a label may have been a distinguishing factor for tariff payments on British goods. Ladies shoes are frequently listed separately on ship's manifests, cargo lists and Custom House records in seaport cities such as Salem, MA. and Portsmouth, NH.

Illustrations courtesy of
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Warner House, Historic Deerfield

The author thanks Tara Vose, Emma Hope, Bridget Swift, Carolyn Roy, Ned Lazaro and Tom Hardiman for their ongoing assistance.